Divided, they rule? The emerging banditry landscape in northwest Nigeria

Banditry in northwest Nigeria has emerged as a pervasive security challenge, yet remains overshadowed by the focus on jihadist violence in the region. This report examines the evolution of banditry as a decentralised and dynamic phenomenon, encompassing cattle rustling, kidnapping for ransom, extortion and illicit mining. Unlike jihadist groups, bandit networks operate without ideological ambitions but significantly influence rural governance, challenging state authority through both roving predation and stationary extortion. The study explores the structure of bandit society, revealing a fragmented yet resilient hierarchy where power is defined by access to weapons, wealth and followers. Based on extensive field research and historical analysis, the report highlights how contemporary banditry borrows from precolonial patterns of violent regulation. It maps the emerging political geography of banditry, which, like precolonial rule, involves a system of concentric circles: bandit heartlands marked by cohabitation and governance, tribute zones where communities pay levies for security, and volatile raiding frontiers. This spatial model offers new insight into the variable geography of banditry and its differential effects on rural communities.